Meet Kerry Chaplin | Rabbi, Ritualist, Spiritual Counselor

We had the good fortune of connecting with Kerry Chaplin and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Kerry, how has your perspective on work-life balance evolved over time?
Life is a rhythm in which love, faith, fear, courage – everything really, including balance – come and go. And that’s okay. Sometimes, we think there’s some kind of magic balance we can achieve once and for all. But it’s more like riding a bike. I push on one side and then the other, and then the other. It’s a rhythm that doesn’t stop – until it does. When I’m aware of this rhythm, I feel the wind on my skin and I feel alive (sometimes… also sometimes, it’s just hard).

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
I help people hear the voice of their soul. A bold statement, I know. But I don’t do it alone. Thousands of years of Jewish texts, rituals, practices, and wisdom divined from diverse human experiences help us hear that part ourselves that knows we are a part of Something Bigger.

I work with Jewish folks, Jew-ish folks, and non-Jewish folks, queers, cis folks, addicts, family of addicts, grieving people, people of color, and really, anyone who sees themselves on the margins. What they share is a longing to connect with themselves, others, and Something Beyond Themselves. With some folks, that connection happens in one-on-one spiritual counseling, with others it might be in co-creating a life cycle ritual, and with others during a monthly Rosh Hodesh/new moon workshop in my backyard.

This sort of connective work can be challenging. I’ve heard from some often successful people that what matters is metrics – the number of people who come to a gathering, the number of gatherings, whether or not people return every month, etc. I’ve learned that these sorts of numbers work best in politics and business, but just aren’t as important in matters of spirit. So what I do isn’t necessarily scalable or easily replicable and that’s okay. Instead, I lead by example: creating refuge from numericalizing human beings – ourselves and others. Numbers can be isolating. Refuge reminds us that we are less alone than we think we are.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
Okay nerds, let’s go to the Last Bookstore, to the mikvah, the ritual waters, at American Jewish University, and to my favorite beach walk. There’s probably a Jewish holiday of some kind, so let’s go to IKAR or SIJCC or Nefesh for some soul nourishment. And then we’ll hit all the completely gluten-free restaurants, including (obviously) gelato from Ecco un Poco. We’ll hike in the Santa Monica Mountains and the Angeles National Forrest. Then we’ll go to my kindergartener’s soccer game and her swimming lesson. And we can just rest, too.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
When I first applied for rabbinical school, the Conservative Movement was not accepting openly queer people into any of its schools (at the time, they referred only to gay and lesbian people). During my application process, I starting walking right back into the closet. Thank God I saw how lonely it was in there. I called both schools to withdraw my application. Only one of the deans at one of the schools called me back. I learned later than Rabbi Aaron Alexander circled his block maybe 20 times so he could stay on the phone with me – to listen and feel with me. I will never forget the refuge he extended. And now as a rabbi myself, I get to be others’ refuge in an often cruel world.

Website: www.rabbikerry.com

Instagram: @rabbi.kerry.chaplin

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kerryrchaplin/

Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/rabbi-kerry-chaplin-los-angeles

Image Credits
Marta Evry, Rebecca y Las Otras, Ali Levin